Population growth seen most in Indiana suburbs

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – After six years of declining growth, it looks like Indiana is starting to turn things around. Analysis by the Kelley School of Business spells out the numbers.

The US Census Bureau released its population estimates Thursday and it shows the state grew at a rate of 0.51 percent last year. That’s up from 0.33 percent in 2012.

And most of that growth was in the suburbs. Hamilton County was the fastest growing county with a 2.5 percent increase. Boone County grew by at a rate of 2.5 percent too. Hendricks County grew by 2 percent and Johnson County came in with growth at a rate of 1.6 percent.

When it comes to growth in terms of number of people, Marion County posted the largest gain by adding almost 9,400 new residents. That’s the largest one year increase since 1992.

Even though Indiana is ranked as the 30th fastest growing state, not all Indiana counties grew. About 45 of the state’s counties lost numeric population. The biggest loser when it came to population drop was Lake County. It lost more than 1,600 residents this year.